Oil Search (Action Comics)
Oil Search was issue #57 in the Adventures of Biggles comic series published by Action Comics of Sydney, Australia. Issue 56 was probably published in 1956 with drawings by John Dixon and comprised 24 pages including covers. The cover art features Biggles fighting a man next to a Catalina and is relevant to the storyline The story was later republished in the U.K. by Strato Publications as issue #8 of their Adventures of Biggles reprint series. The Strato issue has a different cover which appears to be taken from issue #51 of the Australian series. There are 68 pages with covers and these other stories are included: *Tim Valour, Commander of the Famous Tigerhawks (drawn by John Dixon) *The Crimson Comet (drawn by John Dixon) *River of Death (a Gimlet story, uncredited) Synopsis Biggles goes on leave to join a friend prospecting for oil in the South Seas but it turns out to be a "working holiday". Plot (Click on expand to read) Biggles applies for leave and flies to Singapore to meet his friend Warren Jennings. Together with his geologist father, Mr Jennings, they set sail in a lugger to prospect for oil among the South Sea islands. They arrive and anchor off a small island and begin diving for rock samples where Biggles has the inevitable encounter with a shark. They do however bring up some promising rocks for further analysis. Unknown to them, a gang of three, comprising Andre, Kurt and Olaf has been following the lugger since it left Singapore. Seeing that the lugger appears to have found something, they set off to capture it with the intention of killing the crew and then staking the claim for themselves. Kurt and Andre approach the lugger in an armed motor launch which Olaf, a marine pilot, takes off in a Consolidated Catalina and drops a bomb near the lugger as a warning, Totally outgunned, Jennings and his crew have no choice but to surrender. The prisoners are taken ashore to the island where they are tied up and interrogated about what they had found. However Biggles cuts his bonds with a rock and escapes, pursued by the gang members. He is cornered at the edge of a cliff and dives into the sea--where he has the all too predictable encounter with a giant octopus. Biggles survives this attack and then manages to steal the Catalina and take off. This alarms the gang who all run off towards the departing aircraft. Now unguarded, Warren Jennings manages to free himself and untie his father and the rest of the lugger crew. They get to the coast, steal a dinghy and row out to the lugger. The gang members rush to their motor launch with the intention of cutting off the escape of the lugger. But Biggles has been watching this and bombs the motor launch with the remaning bombs carried by the Catalina. Most of the crew of the sinking launch manage to swim to the lugger where they are captured. Only Olaf swims towards the island. Biggles spots him from the air and puts down and goes ashore in order to capture him. Olaf sees Biggles and a cat and mouse game ensues. Olaf thinks he has got the better of Biggles when he manages to get onboard the Catalina and takes off. However he has not noticed that the aircraft is almost out of fuel and he crashes shortly after take off. The lugger comes back for Biggles and then head back to Singapore to lodge their claim for the oil find and hand the captured gang to the authorities. Characters The Special Air Police *Air Commodore Raymond *Biggles Others *Warren Jennings *Mr Jennings *Kurt *Andre *Olaf Aircraft *Vickers Viscount - appears to be what takes Biggles to Singapore *Consolidated Catalina Places Visited *Singapore Mentioned Research notes Illustrations Editions References Category:Derivative works